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As part of the Hervey Bay Oceans Festival, our researchers had the opportunity to be involved in Paddle Out for the Whales–an event to help raise awareness of the threats whales face today.

A set of SUP boards to help get people into to Paddle Out spirit!

Paddlers held up their paddles for a minute of silence to honor the importance of our oceans and marine life.

Some of the PWF merchandise available for sale at our booth.

This dog was proudly wearing an event t-shirt available for sale at the PWF booth.

The event involved paddling out on a craft of your choice (SUP, kayak, inflatable raft, or handmade) to observe a minute of silence acknowledging the importance of whales and the ocean to Hervey Bay. Before the paddle out began, a live Zumba session got the paddlers loose and limber. One of our research volunteers, Jaimi, paddled out by kayak to participate in the event while Research Assistant Jessica remained on land to give an informative talk about PWF’s research in Hervey Bay. A PWF booth was present at the event to sell items from our Australia-based gift shop, as well as engage with community members about the research in Australia. The event also featured live music, sandcastle building, and construction of a 6-foot papier mache whale.